Robotto Shi

Created with character designer Onorio D’Epiro, Robotto Shi is a robot watch with a big heart.

With nothing but “love” to share, Robotto Shi is hellbent on sharing his affections with the residents of the busy neon streets of Tokyo, Japan, the only way he knows how: with destruction.

You’ll find the minutes inside the heart of the robot - acting as a counting dial for the amount of love (damage) he has tallied up.

The hours are in the Japanese moon. Hidden amongst the hour digits is a secret Japanese character that represents the number 4, this number is considered bad luck in Japanese culture as it shares a similar pronunciation to Shi - which is the word for death!

Onorio explains the design:

“At first glance, this is a sweet looking robot, but he has a sinister intent. I really love the idea that the robot has a massive heart, but he’ll ultimately destroy everything in his path.

My love for robots is a thread that runs through all the things I create. I love the fact that you can transform a simple box or dome shape into something that evokes such powerful emotions.

I consider most of my robots to be sympathetic, but there’s always the danger of a short circuit which turns them into uncontrollable, destructive monsters."

Robotto Shi is a companion piece to Number Cruncher which Onorio previously designed for us.

London made watch

Robotto Shi was printed, gilded and hand-assembled by us, right here in London. The body of the robot is gilded in an ultra-thin aluminium foil, which shimmers as it catches the light.

This watch is a re-issue of the limited edition Robotto Shi, the colour palette and the strap has been changed to distinguish it from the limited version.

Onorio D’Epiro is a designer and illustrator from Bedfordshire, England. As a child he developed a fascination for character design and special effects and mastered the video recorder at a precocious age in order to feed his passion for film.

He studied Model Design and Special Effects at the University of Hertfordshire and after graduating was drawn to the world of designer art toys. He began by creating one-off bespoke pieces and later developed a series of robot collectables known as “Justrobots”, which gained a dedicated following around the world.

His work has been exhibited widely including at The Pictoplasma Portrait Gallery in Berlin, The Victoria and Albert Museum in London, and the MARCO Museo de Arte, Contemporano in Mexico City.

He is currently working on developing some of his characters for a children’s television series. Check it out for yourself at:OnorioDepiro.com

Watch the video below to see Onorio talk through his design process for the Number Cruncher watch.